Quantifying the portrayal of alcohol-related A&E attendances and prevention in the British medical documentary series '24 hours in A&E'.

Abstract

Background: Alcohol misuse is linked to numerous health and socioeconomic harms. Edutainment and docutainment television programmes can act as health promotion tools, influencing health perceptions and behaviours. Inaccurate portrayals can engender misinformation. Limited research has assessed alcohol-related illnesses and prevention in edutainment/docutainment, with none examining British medical documentaries.

Methods: A quantitative content analysis assessed the portrayal of alcohol-related attendances (ARAs), behaviours, and prevention in the series 24 hours in A&E. Main series episodes broadcast 2011-2022, depicting ARAs, were coded. Descriptive statistics and a Fisher's exact were then undertaken.

Results: ARAs featured 38 patients in 23 episodes (8.3% episodes total). Significantly more ARA episodes were broadcast from 2011 to 2016 than 2017-2022 (P = 0.002). ARAs were mainly portrayed in males (63.2%), young adults (73.7%) and White ethnic groups (78.9%). Binge drinking and pubs/bar/nightclubs/'nights out' were the main behaviours and settings depicted. ARAs encompassed predominantly accidents/injuries (72.7%). Prevention featured infrequently (15.8% patients) and involved secondary (50.0%) or tertiary prevention (50.0%) for alcohol-use disorders (AUDs).

Conclusion: ARAs were under-portrayed. While prevention portrayals and demographics were largely consistent with reality, ethnic minority groups, AUDs and chronic alcohol-related illnesses were underrepresented. Binge drinking and night-time economy settings were over-portrayed. Inaccurate depictions could lead to misperceptions of alcohol-related health harms.